Equestrian Girl

by HorseStories

III:Labrys

Principal Celestia

Please knock before entering

Sunset reached out and slowly knocked on the door, a sense of trepidation building in her stomach. From behind it, an all-too-familiar voice called out. A moment of silence passed before her response. "Come in!"

Celestia was scribbling away at a pile of documents when Sunset entered. Looking up, she frowned for a moment, before her usual cheerful demeanour returned. "Can I help you?"

Sunset was taken aback by her former tutor's appearance. In her mind, she had conjured up an image of a formidable, commanding woman. In comparison, Celestia strikingly mild. Normal, even. Realizing she had been staring at Celestia, mouth agape, for a good twenty seconds, she shook her head and blurted out the first thing that came to mind.

"Do you - are you - are you accepting new students?"

Celestia hesitated, before laying down her pen. "Excuse me?"

Sunset cringed. She should have just asked where the bathroom was. Still, there was no turning back now. "I was just wondering if you had any places left." Please say no.

Celestia looked more surprised than anything. "Well, if you're looking to transfer, I can direct you to the admissions office. They can speak with your parents about finding you a place." She craned her neck, as if expecting to see them standing behind Sunset. "They're on the second floor. Just follow the sign at the top of the stairs. Ask them for an application form, they should have a few printed copies on hand."

Celestia picked her pen back up. "What school are you attending currently? We have a transfer agreement with Crystal Prep, but..." Her eyes flickered to Sunset's dirty, dishevelled clothing. "Well, we usually don't accept transfers from outside our catchment area."

"Oh, I don't actually go to school." Sunset waved her hand dismissively. "I just wanted to check this place out. Thanks for-"

"Not at - excuse me?" Celestia dropped her pen again. "You mean... your parents are educating you?"

Sunset shook her head, an uneasy feeling in her gut. She was still in the process of working out the details of her alibi, and hated having to make up things on the spot. "No. I... Well, I don't actually have parents. I live with my... older sister?"

Celestia didn't seem too happy with that answer. "What's your name? How old are you?"

Sunset was able to catch herself before she gave Celestia her real age. She had clearly put her foot in it. "Sunset Shimmer. I'm... four...teen?"

"And you're missing school?" Celestia looked aghast. "Your sister should know better. I've half a mind to..." Whatever Celestia was going to say, she stopped herself short. "Never mind." Picking through a stack of paper, she scribbled a quick message down on a blank sheet from the pile, and held it out to Sunset.

"We have some emergency places available for students such as yourself. I can have you enrolled by the end of the day." She didn't sound angry, she sounded... concerned. "Term only started two weeks ago, so you should have plenty of time to catch up. Take this to the admissions office, they should sort you out."

Sunset reached out and slowly took the piece of paper from Celestia, who gave her a supportive smile. "I won't ask about your home situation, but I will have to speak with your sister about her care of you. For now, I think it's best we keep this within the school."

"Uh, thanks." Sunset took a step backwards, before turning on her heel and exiting Celestia's office. Stuffing the note in her pocket, she leant against the wall and sighed. She wasn't sure if she'd won or lost there.

A quiet cough reminded her of the reason she was here in the first place. Flash clearly, mercifully, hadn't heard a word of their discussion.

"Still want to get lunch?"

Sunset nodded. "Sure. I, uh, I don't have any money on me. I can pay you back, though."

Flash waved his hand dismissively. "It's on me. I invited you to lunch, didn't I?"

"...Thanks."

At least someone here was on her side.

---

Cwalu aet Cwalu proved difficult to track down. Shim felt foolish, but something about the man's demeanour and behaviour had captivated her attention. Normally, she would have brushed such feelings off as silly superstition, but then again, the last few days had been anything but ordinary.

Nothing online. No bookshop had even heard of the title. Neither had her local library. It was as if the book simply didn't exist. Shim had began to wonder if she had even remembered the title right when she stumbled across her first lead, in the last place she had expected - church.

Shim wasn't a religious person - at least, not in the same way most people were. The home she'd grown up in was supported by a local church, and she'd been given the usual introduction to their dogma. In that way, she couldn't bring herself to turn her back completely on her past faith - nor on the people who'd helped her when she needed it most.

She felt stupid, praying in an empty church to a deity that almost certainly didn't exist. But she'd done it as long as she remembered. It was part of her routine - part of what kept her sane. Rising to her feet, she ambled across the room to a bookshelf that looked almost as old as the church itself, sentried by books that were probably written generations ago.

She didn't have high hopes - what kind of church would keep a book of black magic in stock? - but still she traced the shelves, looking for something to kill time with. She didn't feel like going home yet. Sunset kind of scared her, and she wasn't ready to admit failure to her face.

Prayer books... hymns... history of the religion... suddenly, Shim came to a stop, one title in particular catching her eye. The Black Library - An Index of the Occult. Plucking the tome off the shelf, she wiped away the thin layer of dust that coated the jacket, before turning to the index.

The book was old - she could tell from the language used that it had been written about a century ago. Titles jumped out at her - hundreds, in fact, all neatly organized into categories. Summoning rituals, fortune telling, enchantment. And a small section on immortality rituals.

Against all odds, there it was - Cwalu aet Cwalu, page 532. Flipping to the entry, Shim was met by a single page of information.

Cwalu aet Cwalu

Author unknown

Date unknown, speculated mid-5th century.

Cwalu aet Cwalu (modern translation Death of Death) is a most wicked tome, such so that this entry shall give no indication on the specifics of it's contents. The subject matter, as inferred from the title, is the pursuit of immortality through evil means of a depravity unfit to be put to ink. Though it is not known to have been printed, a few hundred handwritten copies are believed to exist.

The rest was just fluff - a short history of the book, didactical prose as to the danger the book posed to public morality, that sort of thing. True to word, there was nothing in the article that hinted at the contents of the book. The final paragraph, however, was far more interesting.

Under it's modern title, the book is occasionally circulated amongst occultist societies as a genuine path to immortality. Given the rarity of the work, possession is limited to wealthier individuals and organizations. Amongst these organizations known to have at one time possessed a copy are the October Society, the Legion of Edom, and the Household of Quartz.

Shim frowned, tapping the final sentence with her index finger. The Household of Quartz. The closest thing her country had to an aristocracy - wealthy people obsessed with being better than everyone else. According to them, the direct descendants of Marius III - as if that was anything to be proud of.

And apparently, part-time dabblers in magic. How interesting.

---

Sunset poked the burger in front of her with unease. Flash had assured her it was vegetarian, but it looked disturbingly similar to the real thing. The air in the room was thick with the smell of meat, but she had long gotten used to that by now.

True to Flash's word, they had been joined by two other students. A tall, broad, long-haired kid called Brawly Beats with a lazy drawl had spent the past hour arguing with Flash about prospective band names. Opposite him, sitting next to her, a boy with white and black hair and a thin moustache - whose name she had already forgotten - sat in silence, flipping through a guitar magazine.

Hesitantly, Sunset raised the burger to her lips and took a small bite. To her surprise, it was pretty good. It didn't even taste like meat, more like mashed up beans. Taking a second bite, she took in the room around her. There were hundreds of humans around, but most of them were huddled in a circle, from which Sunset could hear raised voices. A fight? Well, she should hardly have expected any better.

"I'm telling you, Flash Drive is a better name!"

"Dude, we are so not naming the band after you. Do you know how many guitarists there are in this school? We could replace you like that" Beats snapped his fingers to illustrate the point. "I'm the only drummer you know. You want me on board or not?"

"We are not calling the band Groundwater. That doesn't even make sense!"

"Well, we aren't calling it Flash Drive either!"

Flash groaned. "Whatever. We'll talk about it later." He glanced at the silent boy. "Ringo, you gonna give me any input here?"

Ringo shrugged. "Whatever you guys pick is good for me." He set his magazine down and glanced at the crowd, which had grown louder still. "What do you think's going on there?"

Beats laughed. "Applejack's pissed at Rainbow Dash. Something about the softball team."

Flash craned his neck to peer through the crowd. "Reckon they're gonna fight?"

"Definitely." Beats sounded confident. "Five bucks says Rainbow wipes the floor with her."

"You're on-"

As if on cue, the crowd parted, and two girls tumbled out, gripping each others hair and screaming insults. Sunset recognized Rainbow Dash from class, and the blonde girl was presumably Applejack. Both of them crashed to the floor, cursing and striking at each other on the way down.

Applejack bounced to her feet before Rainbow could even recover and kicked her square in the stomach, causing her to double up in pain. Applejack looked ready to move in and finish her off, but before she could, a booming voice interrupted.

"Applejack! Come here!"

Sunset whipped her head around. A dark-blue woman with flowing hair strode across the room and seized Applejack by the arm. Luna? Princess Luna? Sunset had read all about the Night Sister, but she'd never expected to see - or hear her - in real life.

"She started it!" Applejack sounded furious.

"Enough! Both of you - Yes, Rainbow Dash, both of you! Take yourselves on down to the Principal's office immediately!" The two girls groaned, and began to amble away, bickering as they did so. Luna watched them go, glared at the crowd and let out an audible sigh. "I expected better."

Back at the table, Flash let out a low whistle. "Told you. Cough up, loser."

Beats grinned sheepishly. "Damn it. Look, I don't have five bucks on me right now. Can you give me a break?"

"No way." Flash snapped his fingers. "Actually, forget the five bucks. Just let me pick the band's name."

"Ughhh..." Beats groaned. "Fine. But I get to pick the album title. Deal?"

"Deal." Flash glanced over at Sunset. "Don't worry, this happens, like, every week."

Sunset watched the two girls disappear. "They really hate each other that much?"

Flash shook his head. "Nah, I meant fights in general. You picked a pretty crappy school to transfer to."

"Preach." Ringo folded his magazine up and leaned in. "So..." His eyes darted back and forth between Flash and Sunset. "Your name was... Sunset, right? How do you know Flash, again?"

Sunset opened her mouth, but Flash cut across her before she could say anything. "She's new. We're in the same maths class. I'm just... you know, showing her around." He turned to Sunset. "You finished? I can show you some more of this dump if you've got time."

Sunset was annoyed to be interrupted, but relieved she didn't have to explain her situation to Ringo. "Sure."

Ringo and Beats watched as the two of them gathered their belongings and left, before Ringo let out a snort. "That's gotta be the fifth girl this month."

"Sixth." Beats returned Ringo's grin. "What a guy. Fiver says it lasts less than week."

"Haven't you learned your lesson about gambling?"

"That's hardly a gamble. A gamble would be if it lasts to the end of today. He's probably shagging her in janitor's closet right now."

"Gross." Ringo's lip curled at the thought. "I don't know. She seems different to the others. Like she might actually have brain in her head."

"If she did, she wouldn't be with the guy in the first place."

"True that." Ringo stood up, rummaging around in his pockets. "What do you have next?"

"Physics. Fuck my life." Beats perked up at the sight of Ringo searching his pockets. "Got any?"

"Maybe. If your deadbeat ass can afford it."

"Sure." Beats reached into his wallet and pulled out twenty dollars. "We good?"

"I thought you were broke?"

"No, I'm just not going to give Flash my hard-earned money."

"Fair enough." Ringo snatched the bill and stuffed it in his pocket. "Come on, Cranky Doodle's probably finished with that spot under the ventilator by now."

---

Shim didn't have to look much further to find more information about the Quartzes - a quick internet search regurgitated hundreds of results. Real estate, hedge funds, stock market speculation, and fittingly enough, a printing press. Charity fundraisers, tabloid drama, the works.

The Household of Quartz - originally the House of Krystenval - was one of the few extant royal households this country had left, and the only one that still retained any measure of it's former power. Current head - "Queen" Valentina XI. Apparently they insisted on using traditional names. Their family tree was filled with the same - Maxwell, Charlotte, Victor, that sort of thing. It creeped her out.

Anyway, that might be all well and good, but none of it actually helped. Even if they were in possession of an extremely rare, handwritten book of black magic, they were unlikely to share it.

Of course, it didn't hurt to ask.

Click. "Hello?"

"Hello!" Shim jumped to life, startled by the quick response. "My name is, uh... my name is Sunset Shimmer. I'm a student at Canterbridge University. I'm researching... I'm writing a paper on the history of physics. I understand that your household might be in possession of some literature that's very relevant to my studies."

A short pause. "The household does possess an extensive library, yes. However, the public is not normally granted access, and requests for such are not normally considered. But..." Shim could hear the faint sounds of a pencil scribbling in the background. "Given the prestigious institution you are a member of, it's possible the household may consider an exception. I will pass your request on to them."

"Thanks!" Shim couldn't believe what she was hearing. "Do you know how long I'd have to wait to get a response-"

"As long as it takes. Good day, ma'am." Another click, and the connection was severed.

In fact, it took less than half an hour before Shim heard back. A new voice answered, a women's voice, sharp and to-the-point, yet not unfriendly. "Miss Shimmer?"

Shim crossed her fingers. "Yes?"

"My secretary has just passed your request on to me. My apologies for his rudeness. I would be happy for you to come and visit our private collection."

"Really?"

"Of course. It's rather a shame the way they simply gather dust all day. Unfortunately, I'm afraid I must insist you be accompanied at all times, due to the value of the collection. I'm sure you understand."

"Of course. Do you want me to bring some kind of I.D.?"

"That won't be necessary. I've already verified your membership of the University with the Dean. You are a physics postgraduate student, yes?"

Shim was impressed, and unable to hide it. "Well... yeah."

"Well, we have plenty of works that will interest you. I'll show you around myself."

"That's... really kind of you. Who am I speaking to?"

"Princess Beatrix. Keeper of the Record." A quiet laugh. "Sorry. My family are quite old-fashioned."

Shim was relieved to hear her say something vaguely human for once. "No problem. So... when can I visit your family's collection?"

"There's still time today, if you'd like."

"Today?" Shim glanced at her watch. She was right, it was barely half twelve. "Well, I guess, if it's all right with you."

"Please. You've saved me from having to re-organize the geological history section again. I'll tell the gatesman to let you in. Any other questions?"

Thousands - but Shim knew she was overstaying her welcome. "No, thank you. I should get going. Thanks again for your help."

As she terminated the call, Shim sighed. That damn book better be worth all this.

---

"... that's it! Ok, now, third finger, first string, second fret."

Twang. "Fucking shit!"

Flash blinked. "Woah, calm down!"

"Shut up!" Sunset snarled. "How do you do this so easily!?"

Flash scratched the back of his neck. "Just practice, I guess. Listen, why don't you take a break?" He reached out and slowly took the guitar from Sunset's grip. "Just... calm down, all right?"

Sunset exhaled, slowly counting to ten. She knew she was being unreasonable. But that guitar... how did humans play something so small? Learning the Harp had been difficult enough. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Flash pick the guitar back up and begin to slowly strum it. The sound of slow music filled the room. He was good, she'd give him that.

For the next few minutes, they sat together, before their solace was interrupted by the sound of a bell ringing in the distance. Flash sighed at set his guitar down. "What do you have next?"

A good question. "Biology." Sure, why not.

Flash stood up, stretching his legs. "That blows. Hey, listen..."

Sunset knew what was coming next. "Yeah?"

"Soooo... Do you want to get coffee sometime? Just you and me?"

Sunset considered this. Part of her wanted to ditch this school and never come back. But she was too far gone for that now. If she was going to be stuck here, she might as well make some allies. She didn't want to be some loner who couldn't accomplish anything.

And... maybe it was this teenage body pumping her full of hormones, but to her, Flash didn't seem too bad. Even if he was... disconcertingly younger than her. Sunset tried not to think about that part too much. They had the same physical age, so that made it okay. Right? Maybe she could ask Shim. On the other hand, probably best not to bring it up.

"Sure." She gave Flash another warm smile. But this time, she didn't have to fake it. "I'd like that."

Another stupid grin split Flash's normally handsome face in two. "Great! I know this café just a few blocks away. Hey, if you're up to it, why don't we go there after school?"

"Sure. That sounds... nice."

Flash practically danced his way out of the room. After he'd left, Sunset rose to her feet, and pulled the handwritten note from Celestia out of her pocket. Unravelling it, she studied the contents. She knew she had a place in this school, if she wanted.

She wasn't sure what she wanted any more. To go home? To take this universe over? She missed home. But she knew what was waiting for her there.

To her surprise, Sunset found her eyes welling up with tears. She hadn't cried since she was a filly, but now they were unstoppable. Lowering herself to the floor, she pulled her knees to her chest and bit her tongue, weeping uncontrollably.

"I'm sorry... I'm sorry, Celestia..."

Outside the classroom, the Sun seemed to burn with a new passion, as if answering the cry.

Comments

[Starlight Nova]

Will you be covering all of the movies?

[HorseStories]

10072377
Not in this story, no. Maybe in the future, but for now, this story is focused on the leadup to the first movie.

[FanOfMostEverything]

Good to see Celestia as a reasonable authority figure.

The House of Quartz? Is Pinkie Sombra's descendant on her mother's side?

Flash shook his head. "Nah, I meant fights in general. You picked a pretty crappy school to transfer to."

Ah. This CHS is already ripe for her manipulation. She just has to get her tendrils in.

"Fair enough." Ringo snatched the bill and stuffed it in his pocket. "Come on, Cranky Doodle's probably finished with that spot under the ventilator by now."

"Damn kids think they invented smoking pot," Cranky grumbled. "And they can't grow anything worthwhile either."
"I'm still here, sir," said Wallflower Blush.
"And?"

Apparently they insisted on using traditional names. Their family tree was filled with the same - Maxwell, Charlotte, Victor, that sort of thing. It creeped her out.

Nice touch. Names so removed from words that they don't seem like they mean anything will be disconcerting to those accustomed to more straightforward noun phrases.

"Princess Beatrix. Keeper of the Record."

Great and Powerful? Probably not, but the possibility's there.

And the reality really starts to hit home for Sunset. Poor thing. At least she has someone in her corner.

Eagerly looking forward to more. Both Sunsets are in for some interesting times.